The software most associated with mapping video and LEDs has v6 in beta now. There’s a lot of new stuff, but the big banner is obvious – timelines.
Music
RIP Dax Pierson, Árni Grétar Jóhannesson aka Futuregrapher
Music January 6, 2025
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Saying goodbye to 2024 with music and reflections: David’s picks
Music Reviews Stories December 31, 2024
ALM’s new MCO mk2 packs a studio of classic digital synths into 6HP, VCV
You won’t fit more synths into 6HP of Eurorack (or VCV Rack module) than the newest ALM/Busy Circuits module, MCO v2. It’s a wavetable synth, an additive synth, a Roland JP8000 voice, a vocoder, a 90s VA, a bass and drum synth, and a SID chip emulation all in one.
Last chance: new AIR Multiband Filter for free through today
Even I can’t keep up with Black Friday. AIR Music Tech is making their new Multiband Filter free for its intro only – you have through tonight, December 2, midnight Eastern to grab yours.
Mood Machine, Liz Pelly’s book on Spotify, will be a must-read
We know that Big Tech and Spotify have reshaped music listening – and at a cost. But that impact is often hidden inside a black box, closely guarded by its masters’ secrecy and mythmaking. Liz Pelly is one of the few people who managed to get inside that black box, meaning her upcoming book will be essential.
Minimal Audio’s Squash is a free OTT that doesn’t sound like OTT
OTT, the “over the top” multiband compression preset that began life in Ableton Live, was due for a modern refresh. It gets just that with Squash, a new free plug-in from Minimal Audio. And if you’re celebrating Buy Nothing Day instead of Black Friday today, you’re having a decent run.
Burn it all down with Obliterate, new free plug-in from Newfangled Audio
If I had to guess what would best fit the current audio zeitgeist, “free” and “violent distortion” would probably be exactly it. Obliterate, released today by Newfangled Audio, delivers. Get angry. Destroy everything.
The best Black Friday deals in music tech right now
Fall discounts have gotten hard to track, with most makers offering some discounts around now. But here is a select running list of some of the most exceptional deals.
FL Studio 2024.2: Transporter looping FX, scalable UIs, latency fix, more
In an unexpected US Thanksgiving Day announcement, Image-Line has a new version of FL Studio. Here’s what’s new, including various goodies but, importantly – more scalable UIs and a fix to monitoring settings for solving recording latency issues.
Play around with miniature, interactive Rooms – now with Actions
Need to escape for a while? Rooms is a delightful set of miniature interactive voxel worlds that can be toys or games, all living for free in the browser (or iOS app). In version 3.0, Rooms adds interactive actions in addition to coding.
BOSS DR-55 drum machine from 1979, now a free plug-in
The first Dr. Rhythm device, the DR-55, was used by post-punk artists and the likes of Depeche Mode, New Order, The Cure, Sisters of Mercy, and Thomas Dolby. And now its sounds are in a free plug-in.